Forces of Evil
by CartoonFiction56
Summary: The pups are faced with an evil force like they've never seen before. (This happens in the same universe as my last story, Ryder Goes Home, but it doesn't have much of a story line connection, other than unique characters and small references.) [POSTPONED]
1. Prologue

(?'s Point of View)

" _Where am I?"_

 _It was dark. But there was a light in the darkness._

 _I started running towards it, but it never seemed to get any closer. No matter how hard I ran, it was always the same distance away._

" _Yes," a strange voice bellowed from nowhere, "get the light. It seems to be getting closer, you know."_

 _It was getting closer now, just as the voice had said. It seemed to be flickering._

 _Finally I reached the light. It seemed to be both pulling me in and pushing me away at the same time._

" _Touch it." The voice said._

 _I reached my paw out, but just before I touched it some strong force made me pull it away. It felt like life and death._

" _Good." The voice said. "I was hoping you wouldn't be too easy."_


	2. Chapter 1

(Shadow's POV)

(You can find a brief description of Shadow at the bottom of this chapter. She's the only OC at this point. You can also find a brief summary of Ryder Goes Home at the bottom. You may want to read these before you read this chapter, unless you read all of Ryder Goes Home.)

Shadow woke up with a jump. She had just had a dream similar to ones she had been having her entire life. This dream, though, was slightly different. This one had had someone talking to her.

But this still didn't bother Shadow very much. She barely gave the dream a second thought as she stood up and stretched out. It was only a dream, after all.

Shadow walked out of her temporary shelter with a yawn. She was living in this shakily made shack, as she called it, until Ryder could make her a proper house/vehicle and add it to the Lookout with the rest of the pup houses.

It was still fairly early in the morning, and it seemed like all of the other pups were asleep.

 _They're so lazy._ Shadow thought. _I haven't been able to sleep past eight my entire life._

Shadow made her way over to the Lookout. Ryder was the only one usually awake at the time Shadow woke up.

As she entered the Lookout, she saw Ryder preparing the pups' breakfast.

"Good morning, Ryder." She said.

"Oh, hey, Shadow. You're breakfast is already made."

"Okay, thanks." She said as she headed back outside. By now, after two months of living with her, Ryder knew Shadow's morning routine- wake up around 7:30, eat a light breakfast, and head out for a morning walk.

She took her time eating her morning meal. No need to hurry on a peaceful morning such as this one.

Just as she finished she saw Chase, who was usually the second earliest riser, walking to the Lookout.

"Good morning, Shadow." He said with a yawn.

"Good morning, Chase. Have a good sleep?" Shadow replied.

"Actually, I did, for once."

Chase had had issues sleeping ever since he was freed from the control of the WAWO masterminds.

"Are you going out on your walk now?"

"Yep. See you in a half hour."

Shadow set off on her stroll. Her normal route included going down to Adventure Bay, along the beach and back. Today she wanted to try something a little different. She set off in the opposite direction, into the forest.

Shadow had been taking a morning walk for as long as she remembered. She assumed the habit was passed on by some sort of parent figure, but… well, that she couldn't remember. But she still did it every day.

The wild was beautiful. Shadow was enjoying it immensely, until she suddenly dropped to the ground in pain.

"Aaarrrggghhh!" Was all she could manage to scream out as her entire body felt like it was engulfed in flames.

 _We meet again, Shadow._ Said a voice. It was the same one from her dream.

"What… are… you?" Shadow said through gritted teeth.

 _What are you?_ Asked the voice.

"I-I'm…" But the pain, and the voice, were gone.

Before she could even catch her breath, Shadow's black collar went off.

"We have an emergency, pups." Ryder said through the collar. "To the Lookout!"

"Ugh." Was all Shadow could say before she started running to the Lookout. Her body was free of all pain but her mind was still shaken from the attack.

Luckily, Shadow hadn't gone far into the forest and she was able to catch the elevator as it went up the Lookout.

Shadow was changed into her crime- or problem- fighting outfit. It consisted of a black and purple vest and pup pack, with a helmet. The pack was light, as Shadow was the stealth pup, and it contained a lock pick, smoke bombs, and a small robotic arm. Her helmet provided both protection and night vision goggles.

The seven pups (Everest still lived with Jake) moved to their places.

"Paw Patrol ready for action, Ryder sir!" Chase said.

"As always, thanks for getting here quickly pups. Nothing big today, the mayor just lost her purse, but not Chickaletta, somewhere in Adventure Bay."

 _Really?_ Chase thought.

"I see no reason why we can't all search for it." Ryder continued. "Shadow will ride with Rocky today. The Paw Patrol is on a roll!"

The pups headed out. They all stopped at Town Hall first.

"C'mon, pups, let's go inside." Ryder said.

The pups went inside and turned into the mayor's office.

"Happy anniversary!" Everyone shouted as they entered.

It was the Paw Patrol's third anniversary. Ryder and the mayor had collaborated on this, and now all of the Patrol's friends were in Mayor Goodway's office.

The pups were surprised.

"Wow!" Skye said.

"This is awesome!" Said Marshall.

"It's our anniversary?" Asked Rubble.

"This is supposed to be a big celebration, so let's move this party outside!" The mayor said.

Everyone moved to the beach, where everything was already set up. The best part for the pups was that with everyone in one place, there couldn't be any emergencies.

The party lasted all day. All the pups, including Everest, who had travelled to town for the party, had a great time. Well, except Shadow.

As sundown neared Ryder noticed that Shadow wasn't really participating. He sat down next to her.

"Is something wrong, Shadow?" He asked.

Shadow wanted to tell him the truth, but her past had taught her not to trust anyone with personal information.

"I'm just coming down with something, I guess."

"Oh, okay." Ryder said as he stood back up. He had a feeling that Shadow had lied to him at least in some way, and he also had the sense that she didn't quite trust him yet. Ryder didn't know how to make that happen.

Of course, in truth, Shadow was still shaken up from her earlier experience. And, for the first time in a very long time, Shadow was truly scared.

 **Thanks for reading the first few chapters of this story. I plan to update much more often now that it's summer. Here are the summaries I promised:**

 **Shadow**

 **Appearance: I don't know quite what breed she would be, so I'll just explain Shadow's appearance. She has completely black fur which is organized in long strands that are flat on her body. She's about the same size as all of the other pups. Her eyes are purple. I'll leave the rest up to you to imagine.**

 **Personality: She tends to keep to herself, though she has become more outgoing in her time with the Paw Patrol. She's mentally tough and really smart. She has trust issues because of her past, which will be revealed later in this story. She really dislikes big animals and chaos, and she likes being in control.**

 **History: As I said, her full history will be revealed later. As far as her role in Ryder Goes Home, she was the right hand pup to the leader of the WAWO, Jim Ericson. She eventually turned against her former master, helping the Paw Patrol escape and defeat the WAWO. She was then accepted into the Paw Patrol. She has been living with them for two months at the start of this story.**

 **Ryder Goes Home**

 **Summary: After getting in an accident on a rescue, Ryder is forced to go "home" with his mother. Instead, Ryder gets captured by the WAWO, the Worldwide Agency for World Order. They act under the guise of fighting for peace and order in the world, but they are actually a terrible organization that wants world domination. After Ryder refuses to join them, he is essentially hypnotized, though he can still think. He just can't control his body. Eventually, the Paw Patrol goes after him, but they are captured, too. They are broken by their master's betrayal, and Chase is hypnotized too. When Jim's right hand pup, Shadow, learns of her organization's true purpose, she frees the pups and brings them to Jim, who is about to hypnotize Ryder for good. They have an epic battle that sees the pups come out on top. Both Ryder and Chase are able to retake control of their bodies. After preventing the WAWO facility from self-destructing, Shadow makes the command for the WAWO to shut down. The government also helps shut them down. The Paw Patrol then return to normal life, mostly, for the next two months, which is where this story begins.**


	3. Chapter 2

"What is wrong with me?" Shadow said to herself. Even though she was laying in her bed, she knew sleep would be impossible. Not after all that had happened.

So Shadow did what she always did when she couldn't sleep- she took a walk. Though this time, she was looking for more than relaxation. Shadow needed answers.

She took the same route through the forest as she had earlier. She wasn't sure that it mattered, but one could never be too sure. Especially in the situation Shadow was in.

What Shadow was about to do was probably not a good idea. It might have been equal to suicide in some people's minds. However, this was something that had to be done, at least in Shadow's mind, and that was the mind that was in danger.

"Alright." Shadow shouted into the early morning air. "I'm here! I just want to talk." There was no response.

"Really! Whoever, or whatever, you are, please just talk to me!" There was still no response. Shadow started to doubt her sanity. What if the voice was nothing more than a figment of her imagination? Was it possible, that for some reason, she was losing her mind?

 _Ah, hello Shadow._ A familiar voice said. It didn't hurt this time. _Sorry for the wait. I'm usually not called out like this- or at least not this early._

"Why- why don't you hurt this time?" Shadow asked.

 _I only hurt when you resist. This time, you have found me. You said you wanted to talk. Why not do it face to face?_

"Face to face? You mean you actually are a real person?"

 _Well, not always. But if you choose to do so, we can finally meet in person. Not now, though. I only do things in my own time and under my own circumstances. So we will meet tomorrow, in the mountains._

"In the mountains? How am I supposed to find you with a search area so vague?"

 _When the time comes, you will know where to find me. I must go now, it is almost sunrise. And you should get some sleep._

And just like that, the voice was gone. So Shadow made her way back to the Lookout, and she finally fell asleep.

(Rest of the Paw Patrol's POV)

"Is anyone else worried about Shadow?" Chase asked. It was already 10 AM, the latest Shadow had slept since joining the Paw Patrol, by far.

"I am." Said Sky. "Should we check on her?"

"I don't know," Rocky said, "she seems to like her privacy."

"Maybe we should tell Ryder." Rubble said.

"Tell me what?" Asked Ryder, approaching the group.

"Well," Marshall said, "Shadow is sleeping a lot longer than usual. We're kinda worried."

"She probably just had a rough night. We've all slept in before, right?"

"Not with Chase making sure we don't." Rubble said.

The pups shared a laugh. Shadow didn't wake up for another hour. For some reason, she felt extremely rested, even though she only got around six hours of sleep.

For once, the Paw Patrol had a relatively uneventful day. There were no emergencies, unless you count "bath time" as an emergency, as Rocky does. Shadow, of course, was thankful for this lull. She had a very important meeting that night, and she had no idea how she was supposed to get to the mountains. She couldn't just use one of the pups' trucks, because they sleep in those and Shadow doesn't have one of her own.

The only other options were Ryder's ATV (and there was no way she could get her hands on that) and Sky's flying pup pack. So really the only option was Sky's pup pack. Shadow still had no idea how to get it away from Sky for an entire night- but Shadow was the stealth, and, as she liked to think, the thief pup.

So Shadow formulated a plan. She remembered that all pups have backup packs- you can never be too safe- that are all stored in the Lookout. So at night, when everyone else was asleep, Shadow snuck inside the Lookout and grabbed Sky's backup pup pack.

She then had to find a spot where she couldn't wake up anybody, so Shadow took the short trip down to the beach. There, she put the pack on her back and turned it on.

"Here goes nothing." Shadow said, as her body quickly lifted off the ground.

She zoomed through the sky, getting a hang of it as she went. She kind of wanted to yell in glee, but that would be too risky. Either way, she couldn't believe that she could be having so much fun while on the way to meet a possibly demonic omnipotent voice.

She soon arrived in the general area where the voice said he would be, and, just like the voice had said, Shadow felt a kind of compulsion, and suddenly she knew exactly where to land.

She touched down in a clearing, but didn't see anybody in the dark forest. Then, suddenly, she felt a wisp of wind and turned around.

"Hello, Shadow." The man said. "It's so nice to finally meet you."


	4. Chapter 3

Shadow studied the man, but, very strangely, he didn't seem to have a face. Well, he had a face, but it was more of a shifting mass of brownish colors.

"I suppose you're wondering about my face." The man said.

"Well, actually, I was wondering who you are," Shadow said, "but an explanation about whatever is going on with your face _would_ be nice."

"You see," the man said, "I don't really have a true human form. I can make myself look like anyone or anything, but my true face is reserved for the eyes of people- and animals- that have souls strong enough to not blow up upon doing so."

"Uhh…" Said a very confused Shadow, "who exactly are you? Actually, _what_ exactly are you?"

The man chuckled. "This explanation will probably only add to the confusion, but try to follow along. Many people might call me a demon, though I assure you that I am not evil. I exist on in a dimension that the human or dog mind can't even begin to comprehend. It is for this reason that you will never fully understand what I am. Just know that I am a friend and that I'm here to help you."

Shadow was still skeptical. "Help me with what?" She said in a suspicious tone.

"With everything. I can bring you a kind of calm that you have never experienced. I know your past, Shadow, and it is a dark story, but through me, you can forget about that."

As the man said this, Shadow found herself feeling, well, more at peace. But at the same time, something in the back of her mind was screaming that something was wrong.

"That's right, you can trust me, Shadow. Haven't you always wanted to trust someone in your life? The last person you even began to trust was Jim, and even he turned against you."

Suddenly, Shadow felt a strange feeling. Like she was falling, but not down. She was felt like she was falling into the man's face. Then, for a brief moment, she saw what this being truly was. And that moment of truth was enough to jerk Shadow back to reality.

"What… was… that?" Shadow asked, looking away from the figure in front of her.

"You're stronger than I thought." The man that Shadow knew was nowhere near anything resembling a man said. "But you'll come around." Even though his voice sounded as confident and soothing as it always had, Shadow detected a small change. She decided that that change was a small hint of surprise in the man's voice.

"And when I call again, you will come."

And when Shadow opened her eyes next, she was back at the Lookout.

* * *

 **Shorter chapter today. I'll write more tomorrow. See you then!**


	5. Chapter 4

**This will be the first chapter that doesn't focus on only Shadow and her demon-stalker guy. (And no, I don't have a name for him yet.)**

* * *

(Marshall's POV)

"Please, Mayor, don't do this to me!" Marshall said in agony as he walked alongside Mayor Goodway.

"I'm sorry, Marshall, but the fire at Mr. Porter's made me realize that we can't rely on just the Paw Patrol for emergencies. We have to build a real fire department."

"But I'm great at what I do! I almost broke the world fire pup record that one time!"

"There's no doubt that you're great at what you do, Marshall, but you're still only one pup. What if you can't get to an emergency on time?"

"I always get there on time! Please, what would I do if I couldn't be a fire pup?"

"Come on, Marshall. I'm sure you have other talents. Besides, isn't your job to protect the citizens of Adventure Bay?"

"Well, yeah."

"And the best way to do that would be to get a full fire department, wouldn't it?"

Marshall sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I'll just have to find some other job."

"Thank you. I really am sorry, Marshall, but this is something I have to do for Adventure Bay."

"It's okay, Mayor." Marshall said as he walked away, head held low. The truth was, he wasn't sure if he had any other talents. In his entire life, fighting fires and rescuing people had been the only thing he was good at.

Marshall was halfway to the lookout when he heard someone talk.

"Hello, Marshall."

Marshall looked around. He spotted a man standing on the side of the road. He couldn't see his face, as his hat was covering it up.

"Uh, hi, mister. Are you lost?" Marshall asked.

The stranger chuckled. "No, but I do want to ask if you can do something for me."

Marshall hesitated. Ryder had specifically told the pups not to help anyone Ryder didn't tell them to help, unless it was a real emergency. But how could Ryder know if he helped this man? He seemed nice enough.

"Well," Marshall said, "no job is too big, no pup is too small, I guess. What do you need?"

"It's kind of personal." The man said. "I was wondering if you could… convince your teammate Shadow to have a talk with me."

"What do you want me to tell her?" Marshall asked.

"Just tell her that you met a very nice man who wants to speak to her. Mention the name Jade."

"Uh, alright. See you around." Marshall said. However, the next time he looked at the man, he was no longer there. _Strange._ Marshall thought. Then he continued to the Lookout.

* * *

 **Sorry again at the shortness of this chapter. I've decided to change the rating of the story from T to K+, as I'm not sure if it will actually evolve into a story deserving of a T rating. Also, I think I'm going to start a shorter story on the side of this one. I got inspired from this chapter. ;)**


	6. Chapter 5

**Sorry for the slightly longer break between chapters. I was on an Independence Day vacation. And, honestly, I should probably update my stories more often anyway.**

"Hey Chase," Marshall said, approaching the police pup, "have you seen Shadow anywhere?"

Chase thought for a moment. "Actually, no. Why do you need to see her?"

"Uh, I just need to deliver a message." Marshall truthfully answered.

"Well, tell me if you find her. She's going to be late for our daily drills." Chase said.

"Sure, Chase." Marshall sighed. Chase was so strict about the daily drills.

Marshall asked everyone else he saw, but no one had seen Shadow. Finally, he spotted her. She was at the edge of the forest, just sitting there. Marshall reluctantly approached.

"Um, hey Shadow." Marshall said timidly, knowing she usually didn't like to be disturbed.

Shadow glanced at him. Then she sighed. "What is it, Marshall?"

"Well, I met this man on the way here." Marshall started.

"And?" Shadow asked, somehow already knowing who Marshall was referring to.

"He said he wanted to talk with you." Marshall finished.

Suddenly, Shadow turned away from Marshall. "I'm never talking with that evil demon again."

"So you know him?" Marshall asked.

"Yeah, I know him. And I'm not going to talk to him, end of story. Now, could you please go back to whatever pointless drill you were doing before you came up here?"

Marshall started to turn away, but then he remembered one more detail of his conversation with the stranger. "Oh, the man also said to mention someone named 'Jade'."

Before Marshall could blink, Shadow was running deeper into the forest, making some kind of noise that Marshall had never heard in any other living creature. "Shadow, wait!" He called after her. When she didn't stop, even though every instinct in his body told him not to, Marshall ran after her.

(Shadow's POV)

Shadow ran as fast as she could through the forest, tears streaming from her eyes. Eventually, she reached a familiar clearing. Had she really ran all this way? Did it really matter?

"Come out here, you evil beast!" Shadow screamed at the air. "Show yourself!"

"Now, Shadow-" The man, who had now appeared, started to say, before he was interrupted by Shadow.

"I don't care what you have to say. I won't listen to your sweet tongue. Just tell me this- how do you know about Jade?!"

"You really think I have a sweet tongue?" The man said, a tone of false humility in his voice.

"Tell me NOW!" Shadow screamed.

"All right, all right. The answer to your question really shouldn't be that hard to find. I see everything. I know everything about the mortal world. That includes your past. Now why don't you calm down. I think you'll find that much easier to do if you give yourself up to me."

For a moment, Shadow once again was tempted to look into the man's void of a face. But her pure rage was too powerful for that. "I won't fall for that again."

Just then, Marshall stumbled into the clearing. "Shadow," he said, panting, "stop *huff* running."

"Hello, Marshall." The man said.

"Oh, it's you." Marshall said. He started to look up. He wanted to see the man's face.

"Marshall, don't!" Shadow yelled. But it was too late. Marshall was already frozen, staring into the man's shifting face. Then, his eyes changed to nothing but blue for a second, and then he started moving again. His eyes were back to normal, yet there was something that felt really wrong about them.

"M-Marshall?" Shadow asked.

"Yes, Shadow?" Marshall replied, normally enough. There was still something… unnerving about the way he said it, though.

Shadow looked from Marshall to the man and back. Then she came to a sudden decision. "We have to leave, Marshall. NOW."

Before Marshall could protest, Shadow was pushing him through the forest. As they ran along, they heard a booming voice from behind them. "YOU CAN NEVER ESCAPE ME!"

Escape they did, though, at least for the moment. The man didn't seem to be pursuing them. Finally, Shadow and Marshall made it back to the Lookout.

"Now do you understand why I can't talk to him?" Shadow said to Marshall.

"Actually, no." Marshall replied, sounding just like himself yet somehow completely different. "I think that man seemed very nice. We should go back." It took no more than a direct look in the eye for Shadow to know the truth. Marshall was gone. Well, he was standing right there, but it wasn't really him. The real Marshall, at least on the inside, was gone.

 **Dang it, I just got even more inspired by this story. I have to act on this inspiration soon, so it looks like I'll be performing double duty.**


End file.
